There's a new (hot) dog at Miller Park: Hebrew National joins the Milwaukee Brewers lineup

The Milwaukee Brewers have switched sponsors for the team's Famous Racing Sausages.
Wochit

The Hot Dog helps load the truck Feb. 6 as other newly named Johnsonville Famous Racing Sausages, formerly the Famous Klement's Racing Sausages, were on hand to help the Brewers pack up for spring workouts in Arizona.(Photo: Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

The winner, said Brewers spokesman Tyler Barnes, was Hebrew National. Founded in New York City in 1905, the hot dog brand is now part of food giant ConAgra Foods Inc.

The company markets its hot dogs as "kosher," meaning they are prepared under careful supervision of rabbis. But there is debate within the Jewish community about whether they meet the rigorous standards for kosher foods. That's especially true in ballparks where they are cooked on grills also used to prepare nonkosher meat, an Ohio-based rabbi Jason Miller wrote in a 2012 blog.

The hot dog switch will not affect the Famous Racing Sausages contest staged in the bottom of the sixth inning of each home game.

"There’s no impact on it. The Hot Dog is still in the race," Barnes said in an email.

"All of the Racing Sausages are part of the Johnsonville partnership, including the Hot Dog."

A Johnsonville spokeswoman did not respond to a call for comment.

Last season, the Hot Dog was No. 2 in races won, with 22, compared with 27 for the top finisher, the Polish. (The Chorizo won 19, Italian 9 and the Brat 7.)